Alliance Work Groups & Advisory Groups
The Children’s Opportunity Alliance manages numerous advisory groups that help shape the priorities and initiatives that will move us toward meaningful change within the early childhood system.
Learn more about the groups below, and fill out this interest form by April 30 if you’d like to join our work.
Join a Strategic Work Group
The Alliance is looking for individuals to join several new and refreshed work groups that will collaborate to advance the coordinated strategies of the Common Agenda:
Affordable Access Work Group: Expand affordable access to high-quality early care and education programs by reducing the cost and removing barriers for families.
Family Navigation Work Group: Engage with families about how to ensure their young children are thriving and how to navigate and access early childhood resources.
Workforce Work Group*: Recognize and advance the early care and education workforce to recruit, retain, and expand the number of high-quality educators.
ECE Funding Campaign: Advocate for systems changes and new public and private funding for the early childhood system to reduce cost for families, raise wages and sustainability for the workforce, and make it easier for families and providers to access support.
*The Workforce Work Group will launch later in the calendar year as we continue to work in close partnership with both Montgomery Moving Forward and the County’s Early Care and Education Initiative, both of whom are already convening leaders focused on moving forward workforce strategies.
Who would thrive as a work group member?
We are looking for people eager to take action on behalf on young children. We hope to find individuals who will:
Contribute individually and/or through an organization in coordination with other partners and report back any data needed to monitor progress;
Maintain an equity lens on language, representation, and strategies to ensure that all work is aimed at eliminating or decreasing versus maintaining or increasing disparities;
Engage the community (intended beneficiaries and those closest to them) as partners, advisors, and implementers of strategies; and
Utilize data, evaluation, stakeholder voices, and community voices to measure progress, learn, improve, and adapt plans to make progress on results.
What’s the commitment?
These work groups will meet roughly every other month for 1.5 - 2 hours. We will alternate between in-person and virtual meetings. Members will be asked to commit to action between meetings.
Are you interested in learning more about one of these groups or want to become a member? Fill out the interest form.
Join the Common Agenda Steering Committee
The Common Agenda Steering Committee will steward the full collective impact initiative in pursuit of the Common Agenda. This steering committee will take a high-level perspective to ensure alignment, inclusion, and progress across the four strategic work groups and receive and integrate advice from the advisory groups as we collectively implement the Common Agenda.
Who would thrive as a steering committee member?
We are looking for early childhood stakeholders who can see the big picture, think in terms of systems change, and integrate across activities so that projects don’t become siloed. We need true champions who are willing to encourage and influence partners to align their work towards common results.
What’s the commitment?
The steering committee will meet quarterly for 1.5 - 2 hours, alternating in-person and virtual sessions, with actions requested between meetings.
Complete this interest form and someone from the Alliance team will be in touch.
Learn More About Our Advisory Groups
The Alliance maintains two standing advisory groups: Data and Business.
Data Advisory Group: The Alliance relies on data to continually identify, adopt, and scale up ideas that improve outcomes for young children. We aim to expand the availability, use, and power of data to inform decision-making in our community. This group tracks and monitors the data that holds us accountable to accomplishing the bold vision set out in the Common Agenda. They also help the Alliance identify ways to collect new data and create data systems for monitoring progress.
Who would thrive as a data advisory group member?We are looking for anyone who likes to talk about data and help it make meaning for more people; bonus points if you’re into visualizing and storytelling with data. We also love having early childhood experts who are willing to talk data to make sure the picture the data paints accurately portrays the field and the issues.
What’s the commitment?The data advisory group meets quarterly for one hour, held virtually with limited advance prep and follow-up requested.
How do I get involved?Contact Giraldine from the Alliance.
Business Advisory Group: Montgomery County recognizes that early care and education is an economic imperative for the well-being of children, families, employers, and the greater community. This group considers and recommends strategies to engage the business community in signing on as early childhood champions in support of the Common Agenda and works to strengthen connections between businesses and the child care community.
Who would thrive as a business advisory group member?We are looking for business leaders and all those willing to talk with business leaders about early childhood issues.
What’s the commitment?The business advisory group meets quarterly for one hour, alternating between in-person and virtual meetings, with limited advance prep and follow-up requested.
How do I get involved?
Contact Britt from the Alliance.
